Pew Urges Senate Committee on Aging to Maintain Drug Safety Standards

In advance of the Dec. 9 hearing, “Sudden Price Spikes in Off-Patent Drugs: Perspectives From the Front Lines,” Allan Coukell, senior director of health programs at The Pew Charitable Trusts, sent a letter to members of the U.S. Senate Special Committee on Aging.  In the letter, Coukell highlights the risks of relying on compounded drugs—medicines made by pharmacies—as substitutes for FDA-approved drugs to address drug pricing concerns, and he urges Congress to work on solutions that maintain important standards of drug safety, effectiveness, and manufacturing quality.